Philosophy aims at individual liberation through cessation of pain and suffering. The world around what we see is full of miseries and suffering. Human life is a saga of suffering, pain and happiness. Although happiness is there when we take the proportion of suffering and pain - it is not equated or balanced. Human beings from time immemorial have been probing into this existential issues and asking the question - how to eliminate pain and suffering? Or how to bring about eternal happiness in this life? This book will delve deeper into the naked realities of life which affirm the necessity of CSR for the welfare and progress of the society.

CSR encompasses broad questions about the changing relationship between business, society, and government. An authoritative review of the academic research that has both prompted, and responded to, these issues, the text provides clear thinking and perspectives on CSR and the debates around it.

This book introduces a Finnish approach to corporate social responsibility (CSR) and embeds it within a broader discussion on the Nordic roots of business responsibility and stakeholder thinking. The first part of the book traces the origins of Finnish CSR from paternalism at the beginning of industrialization to the start of the welfare state. The second part discusses the characteristics of Finnish CSR in light of the cultural and societal context and structure, and the third part introduces current trends and challenges. Each section of the book includes case examples that illustrate Finnish CSR from different perspectives. The book will be of use to scholars and students with an interest in the Nordic approach to CSR.

CSR is rooted in a strong philosophical foundation from West and East. The basic problem with individuals and corporate is that they lack the awareness of its philosophical basis, philosophical legitimacy and ethical responsibility. Every human being and every living being has a responsibility to himself, others and nature. This fact we cannot ignore whether we follow altruism or individualism. However, the serious question now is that, are we ready to undertake the universal responsibility by contributing voluntarily for a better society and a better environment?

No one is a born philosopher or everyone is born as a philosopher. We can look at it either way. Most of us use the philosophy or the so called reasoning mind for finding happiness of the self and come out with a selfishness philosophy to boost the ego and its gimmicks. For them, I guess the philosophy would be to liberate themselves from the pain and suffering, as they seek ways and means of happiness for the self. However, there are many who would think altruistically for the happiness of themselves as well as of other human beings. This book, discusses a few eastern and western existential and pragmatic philosophers whose philosophies have influenced me in my life and gave meaning and depth to my life and triggered the interest to undertake this philosophical study on CSR and its impact on the society.

Increasing impact of the global corporations in all aspects of social life and in the environment has been the catalyst in the emergence of a new diversity of stakeholders demanding accountability about the impact of corporate activity in the life of the planet. Thus, these significant waves of increased awareness almost through the second phase of twentieth century down to the twenty first century triggered the emergence of concept called CSR. The philosophy behind the CSR is indebted to many other disciplines. This book deals with CSR’s relation to a few other disciplines like sociology, management, economics, ethics, spirituality, philosophy etc. and how CSR binds almost all other concerned disciplines together to work for the betterment of the society.

This book provides a multidisciplinary approach to Corporate Social Responsibility. While for decades a purely mathematical-technical orientation dominated the business curriculum, this book presents CSR and sustainability as a business concept embedded in its cultural and spiritual context. It initially approaches practical wisdom from different cultural and religious traditions as a source of spiritual capital for sustainable business practices. Subsequently, it links current CSR concepts and the latest thinking in CSR with long-standing cultural and spiritual knowledge, promoting a more comprehensive view on sustainability management and its implementation at business enterprises. The book collects and unites viewpoints from various cultural and religious contexts, offering a comprehensive guide for international and globally active companies.

Corporate social responsibility (CSR) expresses a fundamental morality in the way a company behaves toward society. It follows ethical behavior toward stakeholders and recognizes the spirit of the legal and regulatory environment. The idea of CSR gained momentum in the late 1950s and 1960s with the expansion of large conglomerate corporations and became a popular subject in the 1980s with R. Edward Freeman's Strategic Management: A Stakeholder Approach and the many key works of Archie B. Carroll, Peter F. Drucker, and others. In the wake of the financial crisis of 2008–2010, CSR has again become a focus for evaluating corporate behavior. First published in 1953, Howard R. Bowen’s Social Responsibilities of the Businessman was the first comprehensive discussion of business ethics and social responsibility. It created a foundation by which business executives and academics could consider the subjects as part of strategic planning and managerial decision-making. Though written in another era, it is regularly and increasingly cited because of its relevance to the current ethical issues of business operations in the United States. Many experts believe it to be the seminal book on corporate social responsibility. This new edition of the book includes an introduction by Jean-Pascal Gond, Professor of Corporate Social Responsibility at Cass Business School, City University of London, and a foreword by Peter Geoffrey Bowen, Daniels College of Business, University of Denver, who is Howard R. Bowen's eldest son.

This book examines and analyzes the challenges programmes for Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) and sustainable development are facing in global management practice. It looks at the dichotomy of a general and popular demand for responsible and resilient management, and the counterplayers that impact the positive effect of such efforts. The book assembles latest research looking at the root causes for this opposition, and new case studies that showcase the dilemma and possible solutions to overcome it. Overall, the book juxtaposes short terminism within CSR programmes and longer term sustainable development, mis-allocation of resources and failed promises associated with CSR, and sketches pathways how CSR and sustainable development can be directed towards the most pressing issues.

Here is the story of Corporate Social Responsibility---what it means, where it came from, where it is going, what it requires of business. Told in an eyewitness, I-was-there style by a pioneer of the study of CSR in the nation's business schools, it takes the reader through a half century of corporate scandals and fierce struggles over corporate ethics---from Ralph Nader's 1960s Campaign GM to today's white collar crimes at Enron, WorldCom, Tyco, and other Wall Street giants. It lays bare the values that drive corporate culture, explores the motivational depths of corporate strategy and policy, demonstrates how biological impulses can lead business decision makers astray, questions the relevance and ethical commitment of business school education, reveals the spiritual side of management life, and holds out hope that the New Millennium will see improvement in the ethical performance of business. William C. Frederick is one of the founders of the study of Corporate Social Responsibility in the United States and initiated some of the key concepts and analytic categories. His books include Business and Society, Social Auditing, and Values, Nature, and Culture in the American Corporation. He was president of The Society for Business Ethics and The Society for Advancement of Socio-Economics, and chaired the Social Issues in Management division of The Academy of Management. He conducted studies of management education in Spain, Italy, Egypt, Yugoslavia, Ecuador, Nigeria, and Australia, and designed and taught programs for executives in U. S. corporations. He was dean of the business schools at the University of Kansas City and the University of Pittsburgh. He received a PhD in economics and anthropology from the University of Texas. Corporation, Be Good draws on the author's half-century of thinking about the social and ethical responsibilities of the modern corporation.